France exploring ‘co-operation’ in making Nagpur a smart city

* On the first day of his two-day visit to the city, French Consul General Jean-Raphaël Peytregnet and Trade Commissioner Matthieu Leffort meet VIA

* To meet city Mayor Pravin Datke and VED office-bearers, and visit MIHAN on Friday

By Kartik Lokhande 

Slowly but surely Nagpur is gaining prominence as an emerging destination for investment and is attracting more attention of other countries. On Thursday, beginning his two-day visit to the Orange City, French Consul General Jean-Raphaël Peytregnet said that France was exploring ‘co-operation’ in making Nagpur one of the smart cities as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

After his interaction with Vidarbha Industries Association (VIA) office-bearers, the French Consul General Jean-Raphaël Peytregnet and Trade Commissioner Matthieu Leffort interacted with media at Hotel Radisson Blu on Thursday evening and threw light on the potential sectors of investment. “We have expertise in making smart cities. France and India can join forces to propose smart solutions in urban planning, waste management, transportation, engineering, sustainable development, heritage conservation, tourism etc,” said Jean-Raphaël Peytregnet. He lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of developing smart cities in India as ‘wonderful’. 

(From left) Abhay Tikekar, Alternate President, Amicale; Jean-Raphael Peytregnet, French Consul General at Mumbai; Matthieu Leffort, Trade Commissioner; and Sunil Sengupta, President of Amicale, at the press conference held on Thursday evening.                                                                                        (Photo courtesy: Satish Raut/The Hitavada)

Referring to the recent interaction of Modi with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, Jean-Raphaël Peytregnet said that a delegation of French architects was coming to India in November to ‘identify opportunities’ in the area of heritage conservation. Further, France had expertise in high-speed trains, which could be one of the sectors in which further co-operation between two countries could be explored. Making Nagpur a smart city also will figure in discussion of French Consul General with city Mayor Pravin Datke on Friday.

‘Impressed’ by Nagpur’s greenery, French Consul General said that France was also looking forward to promoting tourism. “Already, France is the most popular tourist destination in the world. Last year, 83 million tourists visited France. India, too, has got lot of monuments and other places worth visiting. Nagpur also has got a good tourism potential considering its central location and tiger reserves, forests around,” he said. Accor Hotels, Europe’s largest hotel group, has presence in India and it is planning to open 50 more hotels in next few years, he said. “With Nagpur’s potential, I can suggest Accor to open a hotel in Nagpur,” he added in reply to a question.

As far as industrial co-operation is concerned, Jean-Raphaël Peytregnet said that France has invested 15 billion Euros in India in various sectors. Regarding Nagpur, he suggested the industrialists and businessmen here to bond with Indo-French Chamber of Commerce and Industry based in Mumbai, to further business-to-business interaction. “We want companies from Nagpur and India to invest in France,” he said.

On Friday, French Consul General will be interacting with potential investors in a meeting to be held in MIHAN area. Regarding Nagpur’s potential in aeronautics sector, he said, “Airbus and Dassault are already in India. Rafale aircraft will be built in India in future, but I do not know the place.”

Matthieu Leffort, who is Trade Commissioner and Head of Consumer Goods and Healthcare Department for South Asia region, said that Nagpur had a ‘huge potential’ in medical tourism sector. For the purpose, adequate infrastructure must be developed in Nagpur that had its strength in its central location. He looked forward to strengthening ties with India in agri-business, cold chain, tools, telecommunications, consumer goods, health equipment, cosmetics, aeronautics, energy, automobiles etc. “In 2014, around 300 French companies will come to India. Some will do business, some will invest, and some will have subsidiaries,” he added.

Jean-Raphaël Peytregnet said that there were many reasons for coming to Nagpur. He was ‘encouraged’ to know that many students were learning French in Nagpur. “We want to attract more and more Indian students to our educational institutions,” he added.

Abhay Tikekar, Alternate President, Amicale; Sunil Sengupta, President of Amicale; Kanchan Ingle, CEO, ETSPL; O N Mukherjee, Managing Director of ONM Consultants Private Limited also were present at the press conference. 

(11-09-14)

Comments

  1. Unknown12 June 2015 at 12:47

    Very nice and informational post. :) The "City of Oranges", Nagpur is the second most important city in Maharastra after Mumbai. For travellers, there are plenty of hotels in the city from budget to luxury ones. Radisson Blu Hotel Nagpur is a good option for luxury travellers.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Chanda boy Dr Vipin Itankar is UPSC topper in State

Image
12-06-14 * Efficiency and effectiveness are the keywords for the topper * Nagpur lads Aawesh Titarmare, Arpit Gudadhe, and Ankur Meshram also bring laurels to the region in UPSC examination results By Kartik Lokhande  “I am blessed. Vipin is extremely hard-working, dedicated and a confident guy I have ever met in my life. He was always at top since college days. I was confident that he would be in top ten in the UPSC examination as well.” (Centre) Dr Vipin Itankar, who secured 14th rank nationally and topped Maharashtra in UPSC Civil Services Examination-2013 results, celebrating with his family members in Chandigarh on Thursday. This is how Dr Shalini, wife of Dr Vipin Vithoba Itankar, reacted on learning that Vipin had emerged as the Maharashtra topper in Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) examination. Talking to ‘The Hitavada’ over telephone from Chandigarh, where Vipin and Shalini work in Government Medical College and Hospital in Sector 32, both exp...
Read more

Hinganghat: Here rests the great surveyor of India...

Image
  By Kartik Lokhande  Often, the work of explorers lives on but they get buried in the history. This is exactly what has happened in case of Lt Col William Lambton. The man credited with initiating one of the greatest scientific activities in the world -- The Great Trigonometrical Survey of India -- lays buried at a place now known as ‘Kala Gota’ amid a crowded locality behind Bus Stand in the town of Hinganghat in Wardha district. Sadly, the memorial of this great surveyor, whose work led to measuring the highest point on Earth 50 years later, has become a victim of neglect. And, surprisingly, not many know about it and the great significance of Hinganghat in the landmark survey.  Lambton Memorial, known locally as 'Kala Gota' in Hinganghat. (Pic: Kartik Lokhande) Lt Col William Lambton The benchmark stone of Great Trigonometrical Survey, in the courtyard of a house behind Bus Stand in Hinganghat. (Pic by Kartik Lokhande) Lt Col Will...
Read more

Eknath Ranade, the man with ‘Rock’ solid determination

* November 2015 marks the culmination of birth centenary celebrations of Eknath Ranade, a son of Vidarbha who made it the cause of his life to realise the dream of Vivekananda Rock Memorial at Kanyakumari By Kartik Lokhande  It was 1962, a year that had stirred the atmosphere in the country owing to several factors including a war with China. In January 1963, India was to celebrate the birth centenary of Swami Vivekananda. In down south, in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, tension was in the air over Swami Vivekananda’s memorial. There were attempts by some to claim the Rock off the shores of Tamil Nadu where Vivekananda meditated. A firm leadership is required to navigate through little storms in the journey towards realisation of a goal. Eknath Ranade, a man born in village Timtala in Amravati district of Vidarbha region in Maharashtra, was destined to be that firm leader as far as Swami Vivekananda’s memorial at Kanyakumari. Born on November 19, 1914, Eknath Ranade was the ...
Read more